مدحتُ أبا العباس أطلب رِفْدَهُ

مدحتُ أبا العباس أطلب رِفْدَهُ

فخيَّبني من رفده وهجا شعرِي

فخيَّبني من رفده وهجا شعرِي

I praised Abu al-Abbas, seeking his largesse;

I praised Abu al-Abbas, seeking his bounty.

but he denied me his bounty and satirized my verse.

But he denied me his bounty and reviled my verse.

فهبنيَ قد أعفيتُه من مَثوبتي

فهبنيَ قد أعفيتُه من مَثوبتي

أيُغضي له شعري على مضض الوِترِ

أيُغضي له شعري على مضض الوِترِ

Suppose, then, that I have released him from recompensing me—

So grant that I have excused him from rewarding me:

will my verse overlook him while bearing the smart of an unavenged wrong?

Will my verse turn a blind eye for his sake, despite the sting of the wrong?

سيبريه شعري حسبَ ما كان راشهُ

سيبريه شعري حسبَ ما كان راشهُ

ولا خير في شعرٍ يَريش ولا يبري

ولا خير في شعرٍ يَريش ولا يبري

My verse will strip him just as fully as once it feathered him;

My verse will pare him down as much as it once feathered him;

there is no good in verse that feathers a man but cannot strip him bare.

And there is no good in verse that feathers but does not pare.

وإني عليم أنّ فَرْيَ أديمه

وإني عليم أنّ فَرْيَ أديمه

يسيرٌ عليه ما غدا سالمَ الوَفْرِ

يسيرٌ عليه ما غدا سالمَ الوَفْرِ

And I know full well that the flaying of his hide

And I know well that slashing his hide

will matter little to him, so long as his wealth remains intact.

Means little to him, so long as his wealth remains intact.